Transformation of plants via the shoot apex.

The terms "meristem" and "shoot tip" culture have often been indiscriminately interchanged. According to Cutter 1), the apical meristem refers to only that portion of the shoot apex lying distal to the youngest leaf primordium. The shoot apex, or shoot tip, consists of the apical meristem and one to three subjacent leaf primordia. True apical meristem culture of higher plants was first demonstrated by Smith and Murashige 2). The isolated tissues of the apical domes develop directly into plants, demonstrating the developmental automony of the angiosperm shoot apical meristem.